Galaxy S5 ROM is a bit of a monster, taking up nearly 8GB of storage

That SD card slot Samsung keeps including in its phones? You're going to need it.

We have to preface what we're about to show you with the following statement: Pre-release device, lacking carrier customizations, yadda yadda. But what you see here is the storage listing on the just-announced Samsung Galaxy S5.

And what you can see is that on the 16GB model of the Galaxy S5, half of the on-board storage is used up before the owner even turns on the phone. It's not quite as dire on the 32GB model of course (and remember that there's a little bit of funky math anyway, and you never get as much storage as manufacturers say), and Samsung will quickly tell you that's why you have the option to use a microSD card for expanded storage. It's something that we've seen before, and it's the same scenario. You need room for all those features and apps.

Still. When we're looking to buy the Samsung Galaxy S5 this April, we'll be opting for the 32-gigabyte version. Let's hope the U.S. carriers don't throw a wrench into that plan.

And this is just terrible and inexcusable. The cost increase for them to finally just eliminate the 16gb version (which willl probably be forced on us just like the lack of availability of the 32gb S4 was) would have cost them next to nothing.

1. its a year later.
2. Samsung took a lot of heat for the same thing on the S4.
3. Note 3 wasn´t offered with 16GB
4. Storage costs Samsung practically NOTHING - they them selfs are the largest ram-manufacturer.

A vain hope that they *learned* from the GS4? That they wouldn't expect carriers to make upper 'options' available, and that they didn't want to go through the complaints and hassle from the low space and trying to make apps on the SD card work well again?

I really thought after releasing the Apps to SD adjustments that they'd gotten the message that there wasn't enough space left on the base model.

I agree the Z2 has a slightly larger display and much larger battery plus the faster processor and still has the SD card looks like Z2 is a better choice if they are priced similarly and available on the same carriers also both are water and dust resistant.

Doesn't the z2 only have 16gb also, and runs the snapdragon 801 while the sgs5 runs the 805.
I'm not sticking up for Samsung here and personally would rather have the z2. Owned a z1, loved everything about it except the screen which they seem to have fixed on the z2.

Until OEMs start adding more RAM to these devices, they ALL need to check themselves. i know people want more features, but RAM is getting to be a scarce resource and it's not really that freaking expensive.

RAM isn't the issue here, it's the size of the flash space available. Granted is bad here, buy part of this can be alleviated with SD cards... just not app files. But phones with no expanded storage and only having 16 gigs is just unforgivable.

Yes, you can use the SD card...for photos, videos, and music. So you have 8 gb to install apps, their cache, and local data. The SD card is worthless if you don't have enough space for your apps. My Pocket cache takes over a gb of space by itself.

And apps 2 SD does not work on Galaxy products. It makes you think it moves it to the SD card, but it actually mounts it on a virtual volume internally. If you look after you move it, you' have the same amount of free space and there will be nothing on your SD card.

Releasing a flagship with 16 gb is bad enough. But when you use over half of it for your OS, that's complete fail.

Not necessarily all true. Samsung and LG made some modifications to android and did enable a form of apps to SD.
Correction: I did check out that problem with the S4 where it doesn't really move anything. You are right. LG's implementation works fine though. I wonder if they can fix it. Well, it's more like they better fix it

See? And they fooled everyone. If I hadn't owned a GS4, Note 3, and Note 10.1 2014 and tested it on all of them, I might have thought it was just a weird issue with whatever device I had. Yet they still put out 16 gb devices with half the storage available and make a big deal about the SD card. And people eat it up.

I thought TW was supposed to have a slimmed down UI this time? Also I wonder about "private" mode? Which sure sounds a lot like KNOX. How much space is reserved for that? By the time the carriers get done adding bloatware that will just about make very little if any room left. That makes the 16 gig a major fail. With the way Kit Kat handles SD cards it seems the SD will be of little use for running programs and will be just to store music or photos.

This is less Than the Note 3 with kit Kat on sprint. Remember, Samsung adds the lost space to the ROM size , and If u were to scroll up, it would say the total space is 16/32gb instead, 12.4 or 27gb or whatever it is. Keep that in mind...

how is that even going to let you install around 5 high memory games without it already being cut in half memory wise? thats why i own a htc one, 32gb and i have 29.24gb of actual use, and ive filled it with a whole crap ton of stuff and still have around 3gbs left.

Ya know...I love Samsung...but come on..this has gotta stop. They should be offering a 64gb option by now...(and even 128gb)...16gb has gotta stop being entry level...I thought that would have stopped about 2011...granted Apple hasn't stopped that either but still. Flash memory is CHEAP...

I like my S3, but I don't know about the S5. Only 8 Gig free unless you pay extra for the 32 GB version, and Knox and all the hassle's it brings to rooting and kernel customization, and I'm less than thrilled. But before long there may be no choice other than Samsung if you want a removable battery & SD card.

These comments seem really similar to ones that were left when the S4...S3...etc were announced...and yet folks still find it surprising with this. A lot of people won't care that there's only 16GB on board...a lot of people don't need more than 16GB...and if the 16GB version isn't gonna work for you...guess what...you don't have to buy it.

Lmfao oh Samsung you sure do know how to keep yourself "competitive" in the Android market. Let's keep our friends and family from making the mistake in buying one of these and leave us stuck giving them the bad news on why 4 games later they have to decide how much the want Instagram.

I'm sorry but you have a slightly faster S4 with minimal upgrades and then you load it with bloatware and I'm supposed to be running to get one? No....it's either see if the rumored galaxy F is true or goto htc (or gasp the iphone 6...nahhh)

This will be the first Galaxy S phone I will not get. I started with the Captivate and had all of them through the 4 last year. I had the 32GB model plus a 64GB sd card, but I finally realized that I do not really need all the features and the bloat from AT&T and Samsung so the Moto X and Nexus 5 are fine for me. So many features that you will never use make the ROM so large and takes away from app space. Samsung should have gone 32GB base model and 64GB IMO.

And this is why I really hope Google doesn't kill off the Nexus line. Samsung really has achieved their goal to be just like Apple, when so many sheep buy these ridiculous bloated things thinking this is what represents Android. Far from it. Far Far from it. No wonder Google is complaining about Sam crap.

Been screaming about lack of internal storage for over a year, the Device manufacturers do not listen to the consumer as much as they would listen to the large websites that go to these events. You must tell these asses that 16gb is just pathetic. I will not even consider any new device unless a minimum of 32gb internal with sd-card support, without sd-card support a minimum of 64gb is a must have. Anything less for todays smartphone is ridiculous. The amount of money to add storage during the manufacturing process is pennies, I want a phone that is with the times not a antique before you start.

To the general smartphone user I guess its quite a smartphone... To the super user, apples iPhone isn't even a consideration due to the recent jailbreak impossible scheme, atleast you can root the touchwiz off of Samsung.

7.9Gb's.. Really?
I don't think I've laughed so hard in a month of Sundays...
If the Cookie Cutter looks and 2 Gb's of RAM were not bad enough...
And the Samsung Sheep will suck this S4.1 Abomination right up.
Well.. At least for $650.00+ Tax it can let you know when your Heart is about to collapse..

I can't wait for the carrier versions. More very useful stuff added from verizon and the beautiful Verizon logo on the phones. I'm really hoping that Verizon doesn't disappoint us by not putting the Verizon logo on the home button.

Im happy with my Note 3 but i will be moving away from Samsung if they F@ck up the Note 4 faith will be lost and my custom will go to Htc, Sony and Yes Apple with the Iphone 6 which will be better than this Fact.

Wait..
If it's 7.9 available now.. in it's "Pure Samsung" form.. what's going to be available to the End User after the carrier's install their Bloatware? and heaven forbid if Samsung pulls an Apple.. and charges a $100.00 premium for the privilege of starting out with 32 Gb's
But least we forget.. It WILL let you know when the Shock of this purchase settles in.. And finally collapses your Heart.

All we would of liked and accepted were not even the 2-4k resolution screen. or the finger print scanner. But the following a definitive design change, debloat that whiz and perhaps useful new features think outside the box helps Samsung take note lol 32gb base storage. Yes waterproof but if it were a unibody metal design that would be a given.

Yes I'm trolling you lol... And the guys right, unfortunately the market is filled with tens of millions maybe trillions of complete and utter idiots, called superidiots by me, and they control what OEMs release. The superuser is the minority and we all need to be thankful for nexus and Google play edition or custom Roms... Dude, buy a nexus and never ever look back!

That was just rumour and it would be Irish to release it back to front, you would expect if there were any element of truth that the prime would just be the S5 and this version you see would be the budget/lower end handset.

Sorry but 8gb is just not enough storage. That's absurd. I normally get 16gb phones and they last me a year or two before I start getting messages that I'm running low on space from all my pics, apps, etc. No way I would get a phone knowing it had that little amount of space. And no I don't want to have to buy an SD card or get the 32gb one. Samsung should just make 32gb standard if their phones are going to take up that much space.

After reading and being apart of all the negativity, I have one thing to say. OEMS such as Samsung are about money in the end. Samsung is going to sell more Android devices then anyone, because the average person doesn't know how to read a spec sheet. The average person is uneducated tech wise and will buy the s5 because of the fingerprint scanner and camera, they could care less about the processor or how much ram its pushing. Samsung and other OEMs know this and they don't care what we think, we are the minority! Luckily for us there is a line of devices called Nexus! Or Google play edition, Thanks Google! All these complaints are being read from my Nexus 7 2013 that the idiots I run into everyday call an iPad... The general public are tech morons and out number us by the millions and OEMs want those morons money, so its time to practice acceptance and either learn how to root a device or buy nexus or Google play edition.

Your really pushing that nexus aren't you? Lol I think Samsung is over rated too, I have the G2 when I realized its a water down version of touchwiz I rooted that b**CH now I have a nexus 5 a water down version. The masses are sheep n Samsung has their flock some people just don't want to be led to the truth they are buying a mere name n feel its more important than quality n the facts we care about .

Yes! And also, being a programmer and my focus is Android development, I can't stand the headache of app compatibility, we would see much more quality apps across the board if we could focus on less mangled versions of Android. Google themselves clearly stated they want to see OEMs keep it more stock Android to eliminate fragmentation and give Android a more solid foundation across the board. Its one thing for an OEM to add hardware functions, Android is specifically engineered to run on top of any set architecture, but OEMs have decided to completely redesign the entire ui/ux of Android which is not what Google had in mind when they first released Android.

8GB is huge, but not really the issue, its the fact that they are pushing it with a 16GB option ON THEIR PREMIUM MODEL. The same amount of storage that I had on my mid-range Nokia X6 over 4 years ago!

I wouldn't mind if Samsung were organised enough to ensure that carriers had all the available options like they do with the iPhone, but I doubt they will.

Would you really want to splash out on a sim-free 32GB version of this phone? Unless your phone is dying or you just have to have the new shiny, I think a lot of people will skip this unless they are getting a good deal on contract.

ATM I don't feel like it is a big enough upgrade from an S3, so I'm sure most S4 owners will pass, unless they are full on fanboys

Was curious to see what Sammy would bring to the table. I'm disappointed, but not really that surprised. Look at S2>S3>S4. The only thing I'm hoping is that my carrier will drop prices on the S4 and Note 3. I'm upgrading come spring (hopefully!) and am anxious to ditch my Galaxy Nexus.

Current shopping list:
Note 3 (Like the screen size, not sure if I want to carry a big device day-to-day, Spen seems useful)
G2 (LG) (Like the screen size, not convinced about rear buttons)
MotoX (like the compact size, sounds like it runs as smooth as oiled silk)
S4 (yeah its a year old, but should be dirt cheap when the S5 hits the market)

3 of the 3 people I know who are rocking the HTC One have had lots of complaints about it, plus the speakers add bulk for a feature I'd rarely use (I prefer headphones for music)

The only problem with buying an S4 now is how many updates you will receive, which means that it will probably be left in the wilderness by Nov/Dec. Fine if you only intend on keeping it for a year, but if you plan on having it for 2 years then you'll probably have to root.

I guess if you can pick it up cheap its fine, it'll still be better than most other mid-range devices.

This proves Samsung should release their phones with nothing less than 32GB internal storage. They should bundle the new Gear with the 32GB S5 to make it up to some consumers or preferably allow some of their feature/apps to be removed. Also, some of Google's bloatware should be uninstallable as well.

it has to come with videos or music or a huge game or something preloaded. 7+ GB is a LOT. most roms are between 300 and 500MB, and even with the bloatware touchwiz, there's no other way it can consume 7GB without having a bunch of preloaded 3d games or music or something like that.

I hate to burst everyone's bubble but Samsung doesn't sell to you and me. They sell to Carriers. If Carriers say they want a 16 gb version for the average user so they can stick super users with another $50-$100 for a little more storage, than guess what Samsung does? Samsung builds a 16 gb version. Yes, Touch wiz is getting ridiculous but if Carriers want a 16 gb version it's going to get built and sold to countless millions that won't ever know there is an issue with lack of storage. And people will buy them. Not because they are Samsung sheep but because it's the latest greatest. We consumers are dumb like that.

Ummmm...
I think the title is misleading.
the OS takes 5.28 GB.
the rest are of apps' data and of the apps themselves.
maybe samsung wanted to show some samples (like benchmarks and demos), so a part of it is for them.

if you click on miscellaneous files, you will be able to see which apps takes what amount of space.

To the best of my knowledge, a year later those of us who bought the S4 the end of last April are STILL waiting to see a 32 g much less a 64g S4.
Our 16g S4's came with a little over 9 gigs of internal storage available.
Also, the first version of Jelly Bean that was on the S4 did not allow apps to be moved to the micro sd card.
Let's us hope that terrible mistake is not made with KitKat, if it is the S4 will be my last Samsung Galaxy product, I have had them all. I will be giving HTC or Sony my hard earned dollar.

Let's see first time registered at this site and guess what the site wants my email account private data, got to love it.

Ok that aside, it is my understanding that SD Cards only host data not apps, so it your apps are many and/or large you can no advantage from an SD card. Since many apps demand lots of memory, this can be a major problem, especially games.

highly disingenuous article. The Image clearly shows that the S5 rom takes up 5.28Gb, NOT 8GB, approx 1.7-2GB more than stock Android and about 1GB more than the Xperia Z1, hardly the end of the world, especially since you can keep all your downloads, data and even app files on the microSD card.

You really didn't think that over time Google would reduce the size of it's tracking software did you? Some day someone will sue and they will learn the lesson that apple did, the device belongs to the person that buys it and they don't have the right to record where you are "don't fool yourself" they do. they steal your info if you enter a google account on the device as it auto syncs without concent, the world would be a better place without it.

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